4️⃣ What can you invest in your ideas?
As strengths and opportunities emerge and spark ideas, it can be useful to consider the realistic investments needed for different activities and how feasible they are at this point, as lack of necessary investments are a threat to plans. 💡 Unfortunately, no matter how creative the idea, fundraising activity is rarely free! But whatever you put into it should be seen as an investment, capable of bringing many times more money back to your organisation – and therefore it is important to invest your resources wisely.
For example, you might have someone who is a great writer, and can put together a compelling letter outlining your needs and goals. You may be operating in a country where NGOs, foundations or individuals often make grants to local charities. Together these strengths suggest an opportunity to write to all the grant making trusts in the country and ask them for a donation, with the aim that a small percentage would reply with funds. 💰 This is a good idea and likely to succeed – but the activity requires inputs too, such as someone to do the research on the donors and organise the mailing, as well as paper and ink and stamps.
Work out the costs of your ideas, as well as who would do the work. Is the plan feasible for you? It is also worth considering the human resources that you can invest in your fundraising. There are standard fundraiser job descriptions you can look at to see if employing someone to do this work would be an option for you to consider: Professional Fundraiser Job Description Template
5️⃣ Where do other groups get their money from?
This is a research (or spying!) exercise. Think about organisations you admire or know are well funded, or groups that do similar work to you, or that you already work with. 👩🏾💻 How are they funded? Where does their money come from? You could ask them if you have a good relationship, or look up their annual reports – these might be on their website or hosted by the charity registration authority in your country. 👀 This research may help identify new ideas, or give you a sense of what is achievable through different types of fundraising for organisations like yours. Remember, people are often proud of their success and happy to share how they did it – be bold, and ask!
6️⃣ How long do you have to raise this money?
This is a practical consideration that will help shape the choices you make, and is related to goal you are focusing on. If you only have 12 months to raise the money you need, you might choose more direct but one-off methods – like a crowd funder appeal, a large raffle or an event. 📆 If you have three years or more, you might cultivate methods that lead to repeated or longer-term funding, but take longer to get going, such as partnerships or multiyear grants from foundations.
7️⃣ Are there any legal practicalities you need to consider?
Sometimes creative ideas run into administrative or legal challenges! For example, if you are running a raffle or a competition, are there gambling laws you need to comply with? In many countries you might need a specific licence for this type of activity. Do you need to change anything about your government registration in order to fundraise? In some countries you may be registered to work with communities, but not registered to receive donations. 💻 Best to check and update your status if needed before you invest time and effort in fundraising! Whichever government department you are currently registered with is the best starting point for this information.